Healthy Banana Bread!
With this healthy banana bread recipe, you're only a few basic ingredients away from the best banana bread ever! It's made with whole wheat flour and honey.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
Want to make someone’s day? Bake them some banana bread! Just yesterday, I said, “I’m going to bake some banana bread,” and watched a full-grown man’s eyes light up like a kid’s on Christmas morning.
Banana bread is one of those classic, all-American comfort food recipes that fills the whole house with warmth and makes everything better. Banana bread is magic.
I perfected this banana bread recipe for my cookbook and wanted to share with you here. This recipe has all the hallmarks of classic banana bread—it’s fluffy, moist, infused with sweet banana flavor, and beloved by toddlers and adults alike.
Bonus? This recipe requires just one bowl, a few measuring cups and some basic ingredients.
What makes this banana bread healthy?
- This banana bread recipe is made with 100 percent whole wheat flour, unlike traditional banana bread recipes that call for refined flour and lots of processed sugar.
- This banana bread is naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup, which offer some trace nutrients that white sugar does not.
- Lastly, this recipe calls for a reasonable amount of unrefined oil rather than whole sticks of butter (choose from virgin coconut oil, extra-virgin olive oil or vegetable oil).
As you can see, my homemade banana bread has plenty of redeeming qualities, chief being that it won’t send your blood sugar levels for a loop. You can keep them all to yourself, though. No one will be able to tell that this is healthy banana bread!
Banana Bread Flour Options
This recipe is flexible! Any of the following flours will work well. I love to use white whole wheat flour and whole wheat pastry flour—they offer all the whole wheat nutrients, without the characteristically nutty flavor.
- All-purpose flour
- Gluten-free all-purpose flour blend
- Oat flour*
- Spelt flour
- Whole wheat flour
- Whole wheat pastry flour
- White whole wheat flour
*To substitute oat flour, you’ll need to use 2 1/2 cups, for reasons elaborated in my guide to oat flour.
Want to make your banana bread with almond flour? You sure can, but it’s not a simple substitute, so follow my almond flour-based banana bread recipe instead.
Tip: How to Measure Flour
For best results, it’s important to measure your flour properly. Here’s how to measure flour in cups using the “spoon and swoop” method:
- Gently stir your flour with a large spoon to loosen it up.
- Spoon the flour into your measuring cup (don’t scoop it in!).
- Level off the excess with a butter knife.
Banana Bread Variations
Now that I’ve finally perfected this basic banana bread, feel free to change up this recipe and make it your own. Toss some chopped pecans or walnuts into the batter! Same goes for chocolate chips. You could also add raisins, chopped dried fruit or slices of bananas.
Craving muffins instead? Follow my recipe for healthy banana muffins.
Following a special diet? With a couple of minor tweaks, you can make this bread vegan (so dairy free and egg free, too) or gluten free. Check the recipe notes for details.
Watch How to Make Healthy Banana Bread
Healthy Banana Bread
With this healthy banana bread recipe, you’re only a few simple ingredients away from the best banana bread ever! It’s made with whole wheat flour and naturally sweetened with honey or maple syrup. You can easily make this banana bread vegan or gluten free—check the recipe notes for details. Recipe yields 1 loaf (about 10 slices).
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup (75 grams) melted coconut oil or extra-virgin olive oil or high quality vegetable oil*
- ½ cup honey (168 grams) or maple syrup (155 grams)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup (225 grams) mashed ripe bananas (about 2 ½ medium or 2 large bananas)
- ¼ cup (56 grams) milk of choice or water
- 1 teaspoon baking soda (NOT baking powder; they aren’t the same!)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more to swirl on top
- 1 ¾ cups (220 grams) white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour**
- Totally optional: ½ cup mix-ins like chopped walnuts or pecans, chocolate chips, raisins, chopped dried fruit, fresh banana slices…
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (165 degrees Celsius) and grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, beat the oil and honey together with a whisk. Add the eggs and beat well, then whisk in the mashed bananas and milk. (If your coconut oil solidifies on contact with cold ingredients, simply let the bowl rest in a warm place for a few minutes, like on top of your stove, or warm it for about 10 seconds in the microwave.)
- Add the baking soda, vanilla, salt and cinnamon, and whisk to blend. Lastly, switch to a big spoon and stir in the flour, just until combined. Some lumps are ok! If you’re adding any additional mix-ins, gently fold them in now.
- Pour the batter into your greased loaf pan and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. If you’d like a pretty swirled effect, run the tip of a knife across the batter in a zig-zag pattern.
- Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (typically, if I haven’t added any mix-ins, my bread is done at 55 minutes; if I have added mix-ins, it needs closer to 60 minutes). Let the bread cool in the loaf pan for at least 10 minutes. You may need to run a butter knife around the edges to loosen the bread from the pan. Carefully transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool before slicing.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my honey whole wheat banana bread, originally based on All Recipes.
Storage suggestions: This bread is moist, so it will keep for just two or three days at room temperature. Store it in the refrigerator for five to seven days, or in the freezer for up to three months or so. I like to slice the bread before freezing and defrost individual slices, either by letting them rest at room temperature or lightly toasting them.
*Oil options: I love coconut oil here. I used unrefined coconut oil and can hardly taste it in the final product. Olive oil might lend an herbal note to the muffins, if you’re into that (I tested with California Olive Ranch’s “Everyday” variety and couldn’t even taste it). Vegetable oil has a neutral flavor, but the average vegetable/canola oil is highly processed, so I recommend using cold-pressed sunflower oil or grapeseed oil if possible.
**Flour alternatives: In place of the whole wheat flour, you can use an equal amount of all purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, spelt flour, or gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. Or, substitute 2 ½ cups oat flour.
Make muffins: Here’s my banana muffin recipe.
Make it vegan: Use maple syrup instead of honey, replace the eggs with flax eggs and choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it dairy free: Choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
Make it egg free: Replace the eggs with flax eggs.
Make it gluten free: Use an equal amount of Bob’s Red Mill’s gluten-free blend or 2 ½ cups certified gluten-free oat flour. Do NOT substitute coconut flour.
Make it lower in fat: I would argue that this bread contains a healthy amount of fat, but you can replace the oil with applesauce if you’re following a low-fat diet.
If you love this recipe: You will also love my banana muffins, banana cake with cream cheese frosting, healthy pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins. Here are all of my baked goods and banana recipes.
Recommended equipment: I am totally in love with my Fiesta Loaf Pan in Turquoise (affiliate link).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Hello! Looking forward to trying this out! Question: Do you think Whole Wheat Bread flour would work? I accidentally picked up the wrong stuff!
Thank you in advance! Happy baking everyone!
Hi Venus, I haven’t tired it with this recipe. Sometimes you need to adjust the leavener as the protein content is different. Without testing it, I’m not sure by how much.
Hi Kate! I made the Banana Bread yesterday and it’s pretty fab! Since whole wheat flour is a pretty rare commodity these days, I used 1/4c of wheatgerm to make up for the missing whole wheat. So, reduced the amount of APF and added 1/4 cup of Wheatgerm. Also, I didn’t quite have the right amount of maple syrup so added 1 tbsp of molasses. And for the oil, I used melted butter. I am not a vegan so I still use butter. :) Anyway, the sweetness level was great. As well, I did not see the need for the 1/4 cup of milk/water as the batter seemed right without it. Thank you for your recipe!! Cate
Just made this and I was pleasantly surprised… it’s delicious!! I made it just plain to try it out first but I’ll certainly be making it again and maybe adding a healthy streusel or dark chocolate chips on top next time. The only modifications I made was the flour. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough oats to make the required amount (homemade oat flour) so I substituted with half oat flour and half almond flour… I mixed the two flours together and used the 2 1/2 cups as recommended and it tastes delicious! I have a major sweet tooth and this is just perfect with a cup of coffee. It fits in with my newly started diet very well and I’ll be making it again. Thank you!
I’m happy your combination worked out! I haven’t had as much luck with almond flour, but glad you did. Thank you for sharing, Britt.
This is the only banana bread recipe I use! I have made this more than a dozen times. Doubled the recipe last time I made it so I could freeze a loaf. So delicious!
I love it! Thank you for sharing, Ashley.
I had plenty of whole spelt flour and plenty of milk to use up. This was the perfect recipe. It was very easy, and the end result was great. Everyone loved this bread. I added chocolate chips, and I recommend that addition. We didn’t have to worry about freezing half of it; it went too fast. I used a convection oven, which allowed me to cut the temperature and baking time (375F; 50 minutes). This is five stars for ease and flavour.
Thank you for sharing how you changed this recipe, Brad! I appreciate you taking the time to review and comment.
Yesterday I saw this recipe and yesterday I did it. It’s absolutely amazing; there’s nothing left and it wasn’t even made 24 hours ago! I had tried some banana bread/cake recepies before, but they never went as awesome as this one. I’m defenitely sticking to it till the end! (My mom already wants to buy more bananas so I can bake it again lol)
I’m excited it was such a hit, Catarina! Thank you for your review.
I love this bread and know the recipe by heart! Particularly in winter I love to bake this for me and my husband to take to work for breakfast – this recipe makes the perfect amount for a week. It is really delicious and not too sweet. We sometimes add 1.5-2 tablespoons of raw cacao powder which makes it deliciously rich. Also, works very well to freeze half the bread to keep fresher/moister for when you want it. Thank you!
You’re welcome! Yes, this can freeze well. Thanks for your review, Ligita.
sHello! I am excited to try this. Can I substitute any flour with buckwheat?
I am going to try it with homemade ground up oats to make the oat flour (I think that is all I have to do), then I am going to try some of it with whole oats mixed in, black walnuts, vegan dark chocolate chips and cinnamon if it’s not already added. I’m also going to use fresh grated nutmeg only because I FINALLY bought some for the first time in my life and I have cooked my entire life (I’m 41). I will report back. In the meantime giving it 5 stars based on knowledge of ingredients.
Cheers,
Sandra Joyce Bell
Hi Sandra, I recommend using the flours I listed my description of the post. Those I have tested and know they work well. Yes, oat flour will work well. Just make sure you follow my adjustment in how much as oat flour is lighter. Be sure to let me know what you think when you try it!
I make this bi weekly and That’s being conservative. I make it gluten free and dairy free using GF Jules flower and oat milk. It’s my favorite banana bread ever
Made this recipe with maple as the sweetener, pecans mixed throughout and some pecans sprinkled on top with maple syrup brushed over the top, it tastes amazing!
Hi, I made two loaves yesterday and just had to add more time ‘til them babies passed the toothpick test. Was yummy! Now I want to sub half of coconut oil with apple sauce. What is the ratio and what other changes (if any) do I need to make? Thanks much!
Hi Jak, I haven’t tried it so I can’t speak to the results. Typically, you can sub 1:1 in some recipes.
Hi Kate, I have never left a comment about any recipe before but I just had to comment on this recipe. I followed it to a T and added some chopped walnuts and dairy free chocolate chips. If WA a devine. Came out moist and not too sweet. It is a keeper. Thank you for the recipe
YUMMY
I made this for the first time and it turned out so good! Definitely a keeper. I added chopped walnuts and I used maple syrup and my batter was pretty runny so I skipped the milk/water and it was sooo perfect! And made my whole house smell great!
Thanks for the recipe!
Made banana bread for the first time. It was heavenly. Easy to make. I made in a 8*4 pan and a smaller loaf pan so it baked before 55 minutes. But such a healthy option, j wouldn’t mind giving to the kids everyday. Thumbs up for posting healthier versions of desserts.
I highly recommend this recipe for gluten free people using gluten free flour. I find that not every recipe comes out just a tasty with gluten free flour, but this one really does. You can also use ghee in place of the oil. Just a wonderful, not too sweet banana bread!
I’m glad you think so, Amy! I appreciate you taking the time to review.
Wonderful. I hadn’t made banana bread for years. This worked really well – I used coconut oil and white flour. I also used oat milk and as much honey as I felt – as I don’t like things too sweet. I upped the ante on the banana – putting in three medium sized ones. I added chopped walnuts at the end to the mixture and sprinkled some on top. I didn’t have cinnamon – but next time will use. I found the temperature tricky. I have a fan oven and put the cake in at the start on 160 degrees centigrade, however it was cooking really quick so I turned it down to 140 degrees after 10 minutes. I think next time I’ll do it for an hour at 150. Any tips on temperature very welcome! I’d also like to add maybe a little gloss finish on the top – any ideas how I would do that? Thanks.
Thank you for your feedback! The adjustments you made could impact the cooking time for sure so I’m glad you kept an eye on it.
Hi Kate! I am vegan and was wondering if this recipe could be made with an egg replacement. Would that mess up the recipe?
Hi Art! I provide all the substitution recommendations below the instructions in the notes section (for future reference). Use maple syrup instead of honey, replace the eggs with flax eggs and choose non-dairy milk (I used almond milk) or water.
This recipe is totally full proof! Made it over 6 times in last 6 weeks haha :)
I have tried optional add ons like walnuts, dark chocolate, peanut butter swirl.
I reduce maple syrup to a little over 1/3rd cup and added tad bit nutmeg. It freezes sooo well.
Next time I will try candied ginger with my walnuts.
I made it vegan, used oat flour, no vanilla, 3 bananas, no flax eggs & it was absolutely the best healthy banana bread I’ve had! This recipe is a keeper, thanks so much!
This is the second recipe from Kate’s website I am making. Amazing results, I follow everything exactly as recommended and super happy about the way it comes out. Thank you for putting so much effort into it!!! Loving it all! Best banana bread ever! I also enjoyed the oat flour waffles on Sunday morning. Best recipes!
Hi! This has been my go-to recipe for almost a year now. Everyone in my house loves this!
However, I haven’t had any successes with the recipe the last couple of times.
I followed the exact measurements, didn’t overmix and even baked in a new oven this time (thought my old one was causing this to be raw). But the bread is almost raw in the middle. It rose perfectly while baking but the inside is dark brown and mushy.
Any reasons why this may be happening? I’ve experimented with a silver cake tin and a dark loaf pan. Neither worked :/
It’s funny cuz this exact same recipe was always a hit till last year!
Hi! I’m sorry you are having issues. It sounds like it isn’t getting cooked all the way through. Have you checked your oven temperature with an oven safe thermometer. I wonder if it isn’t heating evenly? Let me know!
I haven’t yet, but I think it’s time to invest in one!
Though we baked another vanilla sponge cake in the same oven, at the same temperature, along with the banana bread. And that cake turned out perfect :(
Just made it with the exact same recipe except I added walnuts and cranberry’s. It was cooked perfectly but was lacking a little sweetness. I would recommend adding more honey or bananas if you have a bit of a sweet tooth like me!
delicious ^^
LOVE this recipe! I make it weekly and always have it around when visitors pop over. It never disappoints! I add some strawberries or blueberries to the mix as well which makes it really moist.
Hey there! This was a great recipe and the bread turned out great! I added chia, flaxseed, and hemp seed (+chocolate chips and almonds) and the bread is still pretty moist and doesn’t taste healthy! (a good thing because the taste is super important to me) As a teen, I think this was pretty easy to make! (you can use monk fruit sweetener if you don’t want to use honey!)
Can i use egg whites instead of egg?
Hi Saman! You need the full egg here to work well. Or, you could use flax egg too.
Hi Kate, made your recipe today with oat flour, oat milk and flaxeggs because of dietary restrictions. Its very moist and tasty, I made cinnamon icing on top and decorated it with crushed walnuts. One question though the recipe is asking for baking soda but not for acid to activate the baking soda. My bread didn’t rise that much. Even though I like it moist I’m not sure if it’s just wet. As it isn’t airy.
Hi Cici! Did you follow my oat flour recommendation? You will need slightly more as it is lighter. That could be what happened. Trust me, the baking soda works here even without a major acid like lemon juice, etc.
Hi Kate yes I did I added 2 1/2 cups of oat flour. Nevertheless it was the tastiest. Next time I’ll use apple sauce instead of oil.
Made this this morning with spelt flour & added organic dark choc Chips. Tastes incredible! Partner said “best banana bread I’ve ever had”
Thanks, great recipe! Xxx
This is the best banana bread recipe! I also love your banana muffins!! Thank you!
For anyone at high altitude (I live at a little over a mile above sea level), I’d recommend raising the oven temp to 375 degrees F for both this and the muffin recipe and adjust bake time accordingly. I tried it at 325 the first time and got a paler, gummier result.
Also, half the baking soda and add 1 T extra flour per recipe for high altitude.
This is my “go to” recipe…FINALLY!! I have searched (and made) literally hundreds of banana bread recipes and THIS IS IT!!! I even have the recipe memorized!! I cheat and use a cinnamon and sugar coating instead of flour to the loaf pan!! A few extra calories, but soooo Yummy! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! In all my 58 years…this banana bread is second to none!! It is deliciously MOIST and POPS with so much flavor!
BTW, I use olive oil in this recipe and I substitute Greek yogurt for the milk.
Hi, Kate!
I am not much of a cook, but wanted to try making banana bread and came across your recipe and it worked out great. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe and the notes and tips you provided.
Next step is a vegan version :)
I have made this recipe twice already and its’ a hit with our family. I use more walnuts and chocolate chips, say 1 cup total of two mix-ins. Thank you for coming up with and sharing healthy and delicious recipes.
Love this recipe! It’s so delicious that I replaced my go-to high fat recipe with this one and no one noticed!!
I made this banana bread over the weekend exactly as per the recipe. I added mix-ins of good quality dark chocolate chips and some pre-toasted walnuts. I doubled the recipe to share with my parents and in-laws. It was a total hit, very moist, delicious and loved by all! I’m convinced this is healthy because I used whole wheat flour, good maple syrup and ripe bananas. That’s gotta be better than recipes that call for refined white sugar, right? I’m convinced but somehow my husband isn’t. Oh well, it’s still delicious and I’m going to keep making it! Thank you!
I’m happy to hear it was a hit, Sammy! Thank you for sharing.
If I choose to make this without the honey or any kind of added sweetener, will it still be the same result? :)
Hi! Unfortunately, you need to sweetener in this as it acts as a liquid and helps with overall moisture as well.
Pretty much made this as directed but added a tbsp of LSA mix and half a cup of dried dates torn up a little as I wanted to check there were no pits remaining. Delicious. Could tell they were ready when the smell of honey filled the house.
Thank you for this fabulous banana bread recipe! It is so wholesome and tasty. We’ve made it a few times now, and always add plenty of walnuts, and sometimes a few organic raisins or chocolate chips. I often use vegan eggs and include a quarter cup of flax meal and/or almond flour in the flour measurement. Best of all is the addition of a big handful of blueberries – the frozen little “wild” ones from Maine! Lovely and moist.
Delicious!!! Used what I had: all-purpose flour and Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips. Entire family devoured the bread. Yum!!!
Just made this! I cannot even do a packet mix cake without messing something but, but this… turned out so well!!
We didn’t have enough oil, so I used half olive half coconut, didn’t have enough flour so it was a mixture of spelt, plain and self raising flour and I used a bit more banana because my 3 year old did the measurements haha
I added raisins and pecan nuts because that’s all we had. It is so delicious and moist which I didn’t think it would be because we didn’t have enough oil
Have already sent this recipe out to friends! Thank you for helping me successfully bake something
Hi Cookie & Kate,
I’ve made this delicious Healthy Banana Bread quite a few time now so I thought I would let you know how thankful I am for such a fantastic recipe. Not only is it healthier than all the others I’ve made but it’s also moist, I have made this my go-to banana bread recipe as no other one compares.
So, again thank you, and I’ll be sure to pass it on.
Delicious!
hello, I love your receipts! However, as Italian, I’m not used to cups measurements and the banana bread I’ve already made hundreds of time is really not growing the way it should and I think is because of the wrong measurement. can you share the quantities in grams ? thanks a lot!
Hi Marta! I don’t provide conversions, but here is a great chart to help you.
It’s not too bad. Followed everything other than I used the pure maple syrup option rather than honey… Luckily I added some chocolate chips because it’s pretty flavorless. May try adding some honey and a little more banana next time. It needs something to sweeten it up a bit.
This is the best banana bread recipe thank you for making something healthy! After making it several times I have now reduced honey to 1/4 cup and added more banana to it!
This recipe is amazing moist, just sweet enough and delicious! I am trying to cut down on white sugar and white flour, and I was so surprised at the results doing just that. I used olive oil, 1-1/4 c whole wheat flour and 1/2 c white flour, then a half-half mix of pure maple syrup and high quality honey. I put 1/2 c walnuts in the batter and sprinkled more on top. I also added a half banana extra b/c I like it to taste very banana-y; and I took advice of another commenter and sprinkled cinnamon-sugar on my crisco coating on my non-stick pan. This latter made for a lovely looking bottom crust! I will be making this recipe from now on! Thank you!!
This is an excellent recipe and my go to for banana bread recipe since I’ve found it. I have made it twice already. I swapped the coconut oil for olive oil since this is what I had. My husband and my son loved it so much. Not too sweet, not too dense, not too greasy. Just perfect and moist. Thanks !
what setting of the oven do you use to bake your banana bread? my oven has a lot of different ones and I’m not quite sure which one to use (I rarely use the oven)
Hi Joyce! Standard conventional oven is what this is designed for. I hope this helps!
My all time favorite banana bread recipe hands down!!! I have tried so many others and I keep coming back to this one. I will sometimes swap the honey/maple syrup out for just plain white sugar and it works just as well! I also sometimes swap out the oil for butter and it also works great! But the recipe is perfect just as it’s written, only change to fit what I have on hand!
I mixed half maida and half wheat flour and the bread turned out fantastic!! Everyone loved it
Hi! Can you please explain why in this recipe you use baking soda (with g/f options), but in your most recent recipe banana bread recipe with almond flour you use both? I love baking with gluten free flours- but never know which one to use & why… In general, I have a tough time getting them to rise. :( Thanks in advance!
Hi Ashley! Yes, I anticipated some would want to know so I have it outlined in my gluten free banana bread post in the body of the post. I hope that helps!
So good! I used 4 small very over ripe bananas that I put in the freezer. I omitted the milk because the bananas were so watery. I did use vegetable oil because I was out of coconut oil. Will make again